Orange Pedal Baby / other Class A/B + Modeller (FM3) ?

All those ss power amps are going to sound decent, get plenty loud, and def passable but i still think a tube power section sounds best with a cab for live use. The ss amp is going to require a lot more deep editing in the modeler to get in the ballpark whereas the tube power basically sounds great on stock settings and only gets better from there. I'm an idiot so this is huge for me haha.



I'd look at the synergy or fryette 1u models or that little ksr one. Heck even a used 5153 is a great option and they aren't that bad to move around. Best part is you have a killer backup plan if he modeler s***s the bed.


Just bc you are using a modeler doesn't mean you have to go convenience with every other part of your rig. 4x12s sound amazing with them lol.
A Fryette Powerstation is a ridiculously useful thing to have in general. Just sayin'.
 
@la szum

I have thought about your words and advice some more and I think you are right.

A few months back, the last time I used the FM3 through studio monitors, the joy of the stereo field with IRs did make up for the loss of the Amp where I'm at that I was looking for, but have only had in mono when playing through my cabs. And I did manage to find some IRs that worked and I enjoyed enough to stop wanting to enter the rabbithole again. I have some YA IRs too.

Yeah those Neumann monitors are pretty decent and stupidly flat. (Class A/B too!). 🙂

So perhaps I should simply enjoy both amplification approaches for what they are and not try to force it.

I don't gig at the moment and probably never will again (See the Gig Trainwrecks thread!). I have felt guilty about owning the Bella + some amazingly good pedals, as well as owning one of the best modellers on the planet. Was hoping to rationalize and downsize to just one solution (to rule them all). The FM3 isn't so great with the Bella - it's okay, but the pedalboard is better with the Bella, and the FM3 is better on its own.

I also wanted to reduce my wiring and complexity of the pedalboard... But I only have a small number of carefully curated pedals anyway, so it just doesn't matter so much, I guess. The floor in our music room looks way busier and messier because I have both rigs in one spot and I keep changing things about with everything in flux. And it's not just my gear / rig in that room... haha.

I'm not in any sort of financial mess at the moment, so I could always enjoy the Bella for another year and don't have to sell now, anyway.

So this thread is pointing to some conclusions in other similar threads where people have said "Why not both?".
 
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Perhaps we should have a group therapy sub-forum for this sort of thing? I feel better having listened to all the advice and suggestions from you guys 😌

Thanks for caring!

Thank U Reaction GIF by Amanda



** quietly slinks off and orders a Katana Head on the sly, for "research" **
 
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All good advice.

Personally, I live in a place where there aren't significant volume restrictions, apart from my own restrictions of not wanting to damage my ears any further or trigger a tinnitus flare up.
At those kind of volumes, the differences in tone from all of the poweamps I've tried, tube or SS, that had adequate headroom (i.e., a lot) and weren't trying to add sauce - honestly, I can tell about as much difference in tone between two different brands of the same kind of string. I.e., Slinky's vs. regular ol' D'Addarios. Honestly, you could probably have about as much fun exploring different expensive guitar cables as far as "tone journey" is concerned.

As far as why no one has made class A/B modeler specific Poweramp - they're heavy and kinda bulky by nature, and people are gonna piss and moan if it's priced at anything greater than about $300, and more preferably closer to $250. And the savy folks will just turn to the decades worth of used class A/B PA poweramps available used.
 
@la szum

I have thought about your words and advice some more and I think you are right.

A few months back, the last time I used the FM3 through studio monitors, the joy of the stereo field with IRs did make up for the loss of the Amp where I'm at that I was looking for, but have only had in mono when playing through my cabs. And I did manage to find some IRs that worked and I enjoyed enough to stop wanting to enter the rabbithole again. I have some YA IRs too.

Yeah those Neumann monitors are pretty decent and stupidly flat. (Class A/B too!). 🙂

So perhaps I should simply enjoy both amplification approaches for what they are and not try to force it.

I don't gig at the moment and probably never will again (See the Gig Trainwrecks thread!). I have felt guilty about owning the Bella + some amazingly good pedals, as well as owning one of the best modellers on the planet. Was hoping to rationalize and downsize to just one solution (to rule them all). The FM3 isn't so great with the Bella - it's okay, but the pedalboard is better with the Bella, and the FM3 is better on its own.

I also wanted to reduce my wiring and complexity of the pedalboard... But I only have a small number of carefully curated pedals anyway, so it just doesn't matter so much, I guess. The floor in our music room looks way busier and messier because I have both rigs in one spot and I keep changing things about with everything in flux. And it's not just my gear / rig in that room... haha.

I'm not in any sort of financial mess at the moment, so I could always enjoy the Bella for another year and don't have to sell now, anyway.

So this thread is pointing to some conclusions in other similar threads where people have said "Why not both?".

For sure!!! I do both, and think the FM3 sounds great through the monitors in front of me right now.
Not trying to talk you out of, or into, anything, though. :beer
 
I LOVE guitar tones through studio monitors. Especially at normal levels compared to making wtever PA speaker work in the room.

Yah. I have reflected and now, and I think that the problem is with me and my Amp where I'm at obsession for modelling. I've spent far too long in the house too; that tends to amplify obsessions to focus on only what's in front of you. I just need to readjust what I _think_ I'm looking for and enjoy it.

I haven't even tried the new FM3 6.0 firmware through the monitors yet (partly because we moved house and I've only just unboxed them). This is something to look forward to for later this evening, after I've dug out the XLR cables.
 
Another bonus (for me) is I have it ready to go virtually the entire time I am home.

So accessible, and not as involved as firing up the amp and pedalboard. And I can
play along and learn some tunes via Youtube or Spotify.
 
Aye, I need to improve my playing skills, so playing along with YT is something that I should do more. I have a nice lil' mixer attached to my monitors and audio interface too.

It's funny, what with my Amp where I'm at obsession and @the swede's IR OCD hell... we make fine pair!
 
Also, relatedly, while I've been periodically checking for the PS 700 being in stock, the price has gone up $100. :poop:

It's now $1100 Cdn. :poop::poop::poop:

It's $885 CAD and in stock on thomann.de.

Shipping is $55.60 CAD.

Even if you were to pay $100 for shipping and import admin / duty, it'll still be cheaper than it was before the price went up here in Canada.
 
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